In general, terminating the physician-patient relationship is allowed as long as the physician provides reasonable notice to the patient ' giving him or her the opportunity to obtain another qualified physician to manage his or her care. If this requirement is not met, and the patient suffers injury, the physician may have breached a duty to the patient and may be found liable for medical negligence (malpractice) under the theory of abandonment.
Analysis of rulings important to med mal practitioners.
Internet use has changed the way medication purchases are regulated, due in part to patients' free access to information related to pharmaceutical products and medical care. Additionally, the FDA has promoted Internet medication sales by allowing non-print promotion of medications with less detailed information in the ad itself about side effects and precautions than is required of print advertisements.
News about medical bills, and wrongful birth suits.
In-depth look at a ruling that a plaintiff was not unfairly surprised by greater detail In expert testimony .
Updated information about a key case involving contaminated medication.
Although, generally, there must be a physician-patient or a hospital-patient relationship for a legal duty of care to exist upon which liability may be founded, in some situations, health care providers may be held liable to someone other than a patient.
As the authors explained in Part One of this article, like many other states, New Jersey has instituted tort reform measures aimed at reducing the incidence of frivolous lawsuits and the costs of practicing medicine. These changes in the law have had unintended consequences, however, often making the prosecution of a medical malpractice claims so complicated that only specialist attorneys can handle them.
Apple's iPhone muse and general know-it-all, Siri, can provide a ready answer to nearly any question. Its analytical ability would, however, be sorely taxed by the agonizing decision that physicians must make when facing medical malpractice claims: to defend or empower the insurance company to try to settle?
A look at med mal-related legislation in New York and California.
